This invention relates to a novel construction for a ring laser angular rate sensor and more particularly to a construction which is less costly to manufacture than prior art constructions.
After years of development, ring laser angular rate sensors, commonly referred to as ring laser gyros, have become commercially successful products and are rapidly replacing conventional mechanical angular rate sensors in many applications. Today, most commercial ring laser angular rate sensors use a mechanically and thermally stable block construction and mechanical dither concepts taught in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,390,606; 3,467,472; and 3,373,650, which are incorporated herein by reference.
These prior art ring laser angular rate sensors have proven highly satisfactory in operation and as previously mentioned are rapidly gaining widespread acceptance for certain applications. These prior art ring laser angular rate sensors, however, are costly to manufacture.